How to square handwriting variation?

[ReneZ]

I don't think I ever saw one of those shaped as if it was written in one stroke.  In either direction it would mean pushing the pen to the northwest at some point.  Then only one of the two halves could be a broad stroke, the other would have to be thin.  But whenever I looked, both sides were broad,and the loop was thin..

I also don't think so, but that is just an opinion. Nowadays, it is entirely normal to write an 8 with a single stroke. When I was 6 I had to learn it that way, writing with a metal pen dipped in ink.
Of course, writing was on smooth paper, which makes it easy.

In the case of the folio numbers, I am not so sure whether the 8's were written with one or two strokes. Not even whether it was done consistently:

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